Omega Speedmaster “125th Anniversary”

Antiquorum, Geneva, May 13Sold for CHF 3,375

After years of being largely ignored by the majority of collectors, the best and rarest of Omega’s Speedmaster moon watches now seem to be on an unstoppable upward trajectory and it’s near impossible to pick up an auction catalogue that’s not crammed with multiple examples of good, bad or indifferent quality.

A version that rarely appears for sale, however, is the elusive Speedmaster 125 that was unveiled in 1973 to mark the brand’s 125th anniversary and produced in a limited edition of 2,000 examples.

A little known fact about the Speedy 125 is that it was the first automatic wrist chronograph to achieve chronometer certification –rival brand Rolex, for example, reserved the test for its gold-cased chronographs, all of which used manual movements (as did their steel counterparts) until 1988.

The 125 was offered with a choice of telemeter,pulsometer or tachymeter graduations, but its rare to see the two former variations and it seems probable that they were produced in tiny numbers.

As the picture shows, this latest Antiquorum watch featured the more usual tachymeter scale, but it was unusual in having been consigned by the original owner –complete with its box, instruction book, warranty and invoice (for DM950, equal to around £425).

Vintage watches of any sort with such cast iron provenance are rare, and the chances of such a genuine and original Speedmaster 125 cropping up at auction in the near future seem slim –suggesting that the new owner of this one should have no regrets.